Will the Pakistan contingent miss out on the Delhi Commonwealth Games?
That was the question doing the rounds in the Organising Committee corridors here on Tuesday as entries from the 71 participating nations began to pour in. The only one missing was that of Pakistan.
“We have sent several reminders to Pakistan, but are yet to hear from them. June 30 is the last day for submission of entries and till today, there is no intimation,” said an OC source here, adding “We are hoping all is sorted out by tomorrow. The Games will lose its sheen without Pakistan’s athletes”.
Expected to send a 75-member contingent, Pakistan’s fate hangs in balance as the country’s sports ministry is yet to give the go-ahead for the October 3 to 14 Games, despite repeated requests from the Pakistan Olympic Association (POA).
When contacted POA secretary-general Abdul Khaliq Khan said the “matter was not in the association’s hands”. “No entry has been sent from Pakistan as yet. Why, I do not know.”
The POA, on its part, had informally conveyed the total number of participating athletes to the Indian Olympic Association a few days back, but with the ministry’s confirmation still required, the questions remain.
Pakistan sports minister Ijaz Hussain Jakhrani said “the decision will be taken at the earliest”.
“We are in the process of finalising the list. It could not be done earlier as I was busy in the budget session,” Jakhrani told this paper from Islamabad.
Strained relations between the two countries has led to the suspension/boycott of sporting activities in the past, but Jakhrani said that a boycott was the last thing on their minds. “I have categorically said this before that there will be no boycott of any sporting event in India. There are certain formalities to be fulfilled and it will be done tonight.”